Commentaries:
A vital step to overcoming covetousness is to study, pray, fast, meditate, and obey. Consciously practice God's way of life. This takes sacrifice and discipline, but it fills the mind with God's thoughts. This will eventually make sin foreign to us because we simply will not think to do it!
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Tenth Commandment (1998)
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The apostle Paul tells Timothy that "godliness with contentment is great gain" and that, instead of possessions, we should be pursuing righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. Paul learned to be content in whatever state he was in (Philippians 4:11). Jesus Christ set our primary goal as seeking first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33). The inevitable result of doing this will be wonderful blessings and eternal life.
Martin G. Collins
The Tenth Commandment
One of the brothers, no doubt, was guilty of covetousness. Covetousness is an unlawful desire of the property of another; also a desire of gain or riches beyond what is necessary for our wants. It violates the tenth commandment and is expressly equated with idolatry (Exodus 20:17; Colossians 3:5; Ephesians 5:3-7). Jesus shows that we should not be anxious to accumulate wealth because, however much we may obtain, it will not prolong our lives. The man from the crowd was guilty of a desire for more than God in His providence and wisdom had allotted to him. His was a sinful desire of seeking more than his share (Hebrews 13:5).
Martin G. Collins
Parable of the Rich Fool
In Luke 12:13-21, a listener in the crowd surrounding Jesus asks Him to instruct his brother to divide the inheritance due to him equitably. Jesus declines, saying that life should not be based on having many possessions. He uses this occasion to teach His disciples that a godly life is more important than material things. To explain this, He tells a parable about a rich man who builds larger and larger barns to store all his crops and goods.
Since he had everything he could possibly want or need, the rich man's focus was on living an easy life. God's response is that the man was foolish because, when he died later that night, his goods would do nothing for him. Someone else would inherit and enjoy them. A person whose life is caught up in what he owns is not rich toward God. The Parable of the Rich Fool illustrates Jesus' teaching to guard against every kind of covetousness.
Martin G. Collins
Parable of the Rich Fool
Other commentary entries containing this verse:
Luke 12:13-31
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